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PHOTO © NEW PALTZ, STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK, CAMPUS FIRE SAFETY DAY 2012 FIRE! in lockdown, every second counts. When it comes to a lockdown situation, speed is essential. AD-Series wireless locks provide real-time wireless security that delivers lockdown throughout your campus in 10 seconds or less. AD-Series locks work with most existing campus card systems and are available with multi-technology readers that are NFC compatible and adaptable. This allows you to conform to emerging technologies. So if you have a second, give us a call at 888-641-3260 or visit schlage.com/rightcall. simple. smart. connected. 36 SHOW ME, DON'T TELL ME. There are several specific causes for fires on college campuses, particularly in residence halls, including cooking, intentionally set fires, overloaded power strips, and open flame. Overall, most college-related fires are due to a general lack of knowledge about fire safety and prevention. For most students, the last fire safety training they received was in grade school. It is important that both off-campus and on-campus students understand fire risks and know the preventative measures that could save their lives. At any given time, in a typical fraternity house, you can find a handful of students under the influence and perhaps unable to respond to an emergency, says Hormann. Students in residence halls smoke, burn candles, cook, and plug too many electrical devices into single outlets using power strips. The NFPA says that these four activities are the leading causes of fires in student housing. And that's why student housing presents the greatest risk of fire on campus. Fires in Residence Halls While this is changing, most of the available data about fires on college and university campuses relates to student housing. Every year between 2007 and 2011 an estimated annual average of 3,806 fires broke out in residence halls, fraternities, sororities, and barracks in the U.S., causing two civilian deaths and 30 civilian fire injuries each year — according to the most recent figures available from the National COLLEGE PLANNING & MANAGEMENT / MAY 2013 Fire Protection Association (NFPA). Those numbers have remained relatively stable since 2000, but they are way up compared to the 1980s and 1990s. From 1982 through 1995, residence hall fires ranged from an average of 2,300 to 2,700 per year. The year 2000 is an important marker for fires in residence halls. On January 18, 2000, a prank gone criminally wrong ignited a fire in a common area on the third floor of the six-story Boland Hall at Seton Hall University in South Orange, NJ. The polyurethane furniture burned quickly, producing thick, deadly smoke. The fire killed three freshmen and injured 58 students and staff members, as well as four firefighters. Like many older residence halls on and off college and university campuses, Boland Hall was ripe for tragedy. Frequent false alarms caused many students to ignore this alarm. The fire department reportedly delayed its response to check the validity of the alarm. WWW.PLANNING 4EDUCATION.COM